Is it possible for something as mundane as an undershirt to be elegant? …to add a new level of comfort to wearing a dress shirt? Having worn regular V-neck cotton undershirts for years, I wouldn’t have thought it possible. After trying out a Tommy John “Tailored Stretch™” undershirt however, I’m not so sure anymore…
A little background: in February I’m traveling to Florida for a 5 day business trip, and have begun planning a post which will focus on eliminating every bit of extraneous weight possible from my bag. I’ve mentioned washable, quick drying travel socks on Practical Hacks in the past, and began exploring similar options for men’s undershirts recently. In the course of that research (I’ve ordered a couple of options and they’re on their way to me) I came across a website promoting Tommy John undershirts.
These are NOT high tech/quick drying undershirts – rather, they are positioned as the ultimate in comfort for businessmen. Unlike conventional undershirts, Tommy John shirts have 3 unique characteristics:
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- They’re tapered, rather than box shaped, so they fit your body better without bunching up
- They’re made of a richer feeling, stretchy material so they feel great, conform to your body’s shape and won’t “bunch up”
- They’re cut longer than conventional undershirts, so they’ll never become untucked
Curious, I emailed the firm and much to my surprise company founder and President Tom Patterson responded within 12 hours. He explained the differences between Tommy John undershirts and what I was looking for and offered to send a sample ahead even though it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for. It arrived yesterday; I took a couple of quick photos and wore it to work today.
Before we get to my impressions, one of those photos. The Tommy John shirt is on the left, a Jockey® undershirt on the right; note how the TJ shirt is tapered, and the Jockey shirt is boxy:
Boxy is just fine if you’re shipping something, but most people are not constructed like corrugated boxes. (Well, I went to high school with a kid who was, but that’s an entirely different story.) The Tommy John shirt, thanks to its tapered design and the stretchy (6% Lycra) fabric, fits your body like, well, a really well fitting undershirt!
Although it’s not obvious in the photo, the shirt is also longer. When on, – no doubt in part due to the stretchy material – it went all the way to the bottom of my briefs. I’d post a photo of me wearing it showing just how long it is relative to my briefs, but don’t want to inflict any damage on your eyes. Or psychological well-being. Anyway, it’s long – and it won’t ever come close to becoming untucked. Because it’s stretchy, it doesn’t bunch up like regular old-style undershirts.
The shirts come in crew and V-necks, and there are two different types – the original and a version made with a higher percentage of micro modal fabric. They come in any color you want as long as you want white. But for business wear I’m guessing you don’t want fuchsia. Or black.
The original version (47% Modal, 47% Supima Cotton, 6% Lycra) sells for about $20 each; the micro modal version (92% Modal, 8% Lycra) for about $30 each – in both cases, when you purchase two. They also sell two styles of briefs made with the same fabrics. And if you don’t know what Modal is (I didn’t) check out this brief Wiki article. More good news: it’s a bio-based fiber made from spinning reconstituted cellulose from beech trees. It doesn’t sound as though the result of that process would be particularly comfortable, but in reality it’s unbelievably so! Plus… it won’t shrink like conventional 100% cotton undershirts.
You can read Tom Patterson’s story – it’s an interesting one that captures his background (as – guess what – a medical device salesman!) and entrepreneurial spirit – and learn much more about these fine undershirts at tommyjohnonline.com
Is this the world’s finest undershirt? I frankly don’t know – I suspect there are exotic undershirts out there that cost $100 apiece, so perhaps not. But this is without a doubt the most comfortable, best fitting undershirt I’ve ever put on.
It’s NOT the solution I was looking for for that upcoming article, but a wonderful product nevertheless. If you’re in the market for some extra-comfortable undershirts for business attire, check them out. And by the way, I have no connection with the company other than what I’ve written about here. At some point I’ll report back with regard to the shirt’s durability. Please comment if you’ve worn Tommy John undershirts!
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January 15th, 2009 at 10:28 am
These people are supposed to be the ne-plus-ultra of underwear:
http://www.zimmerliofswitzerland.com/
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Kevin Reply:
January 15th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
Petro -
Thanks. They must be incredible; the “Royal Classic” Deep V-Neck undershirt is $77.75!
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January 15th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Kevin – I have been a financial advisor for 14 years, and I wear professional attire on a daily basis. In the past I have always worn the ‘box cut’ undershirt, thinking there really wasn’t any other option. I became aware of the Tommy John tailored stretch undershirt in the spring of 2008 (I have known Tom and his family since he was a young boy). I decided to try them out. I was amazed! These undershirts exceeded my expectations! They had a slenderizing, tailored fit, they never came untucked, and they were unbelievably comfortable. I also found that I perspired much less as compared to the traditional box cut undershirt. I have ordered many more since, and I threw away all of my box cut undershirts. I have given these shirts as birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, and appreciation gifts to clients. My advice to any and all men that wear an undershirt: “Do yourself a favor and try this undershirt. You will love it. You will order more. And you will be a customer for life.” ….. Jason Seurer, Financial Advisor (Edward Jones Investments)
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January 15th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Great blog! I read your article today on the Tommy John shirts and I
felt compelled to reply.
I’ve been wearing Tommy John undershirts (micro modal version) for 3
months. I met Tom, the owner, on a flight to NYC in October… really nice guy. He gave me his card and told me all about the company and shirts – I never knew so much research and innovation could go into an undershirt, but he’s figured it out.
My work requires that I wear a suit every day. I tailor all of my
clothing and often bought a too small in “box” cut undershirts to
ensure they were form fitting, but they were too tight in the chest
(and too big bunched up). I switched to tank-tops to get rid of what
Tom appropriately described as “fake love handles” where the shirt
bunches up.
I ordered my first Tommy John after my flight with Tom to give it a
try, and now wear them daily. I now get a good laugh when I see guys
in the bathroom trying to tuck in their undershirt at the waist
between meetings. I’m not sure why we’ve struggled with this problem
for so long… cheers to Tommy John!
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January 16th, 2009 at 9:03 am
Thank you to those who replied to this review. With all the great respose and high level of interest we’ve received on the undershirts our first year, it has made it possible for us to develop some very exciting additions to our undershirt innovation.
Stay tuned over the next few months as we begin to rollout some exciting additions to our collection!
Tom Patterson
Founder- Tommy John
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January 17th, 2009 at 9:05 am
One other comment not related to the Tommy John’s phenomenon:
While fast drying t-shirts are/would be nice, having t-shirts designed for working out (the “wicking” t-shirts) may not be a good idea for daily wear, especially when flying.
You perspire for one of three (well, 4 I guess) reasons–the first we’re all readily aware of, that one is overheated and ones body is trying to use evaporative cooling to regulate body temperature. The second that most of us sort of know about is that is that we start to sweat when nervous–I’m not sure why this happens. The Fourth is some medical conditions, but those are rare.
The third reason is that perspiration is what the body does to keep the skin moist and flexible. If you wear something that keeps sucking the surface layers of the skin dry you will (a) wind up with a damp outer shirt (if you’re wearing one), (b) dry your skin out some, and/or (c) dehydrate yourself a little bit more than you otherwise would.
You’re better off, if you’re NOT exercising, wearing a cotton t-shirt that will leave your skin slightly damp. You’ll wind up a bit less itchy from dry skin.
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January 18th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Petro -
Interesting comment. Of course I’m on exactly that path – testing technology fabric/wicking undershirts for daily wear. I’ve ordered a couple of samples from different manufacturers; they should arrive this week.
My interest is in cutting down weight when traveling on business (just bring a couple, and wash out one each evening.)
I’ll wear them to work while home first, of course… and see how it goes.
Thanks for the comment – I’ll be back to you with my observations.
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